COVID19

It looks like we will have runoff elections in all four Mississippi House and Senate districts that held special elections last week to replace recently-retired legislators. The election results are still unofficial (they’ve not yet been certified), but all indications are that no candidate in any of the races garnered the 50%+ needed to win outright. The …

Candidates Headed to Runoff, Legislative Leaders Talk About Public Education Read More »

Three state leaders who are among the most influential in the politics of public education will join us for REAL TALK about education’s hottest topics.  House Education Chair Richard Bennett, Senate Education Chair Dennis DeBar, and Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann are on tap (virtually) to give us a rundown of the 2020 Legislative Session and …

Save the Dates: State Leaders Dish on Public Ed Hot Topics Read More »

Last night, the Mississippi Department of Education issued a revised application for Equity in Distance Learning Act (EDLA) reimbursements in response to school districts’ concerns about some of the requirements. MDE will host a webinar today to answer districts’ questions ahead of the September 1 application deadline. See revised application: https://www.mdek12.org/sites/default/files/Offices/MDE/OTSS/equity_in_distance_learning_act_application_8.27.2020.pdfSee revised technical assurances: https://www.mdek12.org/sites/default/files/Offices/MDE/OTSS/edla_program_technical_assurances_revised_08282020.pdf Additionally, the …

MDE Revises EDLA Application Due to District Concerns Read More »

When the Legislature overrode Gov. Reeves’ veto of public school funding, Mississippi public schools finally got their budgets. Overall, MAEP funding for this school year is $37-million less than it was last year, a 1.6% cut, and $250-million below what state law says is adequate to provide Mississippi children a quality education. Legislators worked hard …

Public Schools Finally Get Budgets – See Yours Read More »

Today, in a historic vote, the Legislature voted overwhelmingly to override Gov. Reeves’ veto of public school funding in HB 1700. The House vote was 110-6. See the House vote. The Senate vote was 41-1. See the Senate vote. Those voting no were Rep. Joel Bomgar of Madison, Rep. Chris Brown of Nettleton, Rep. Dana Criswell of …

Legislature Overrides Gov. Reeves’ Veto Read More »

CALL TO ACTION: The Mississippi Legislature will reconvene at 1 p.m. today to take up legislation related to COVID-19. While they are in session, public schools need desperately for them to fix the K-12 budget mess caused by Gov. Reeves’ veto of public school funding. Please ask your legislators to override Gov. Reeves’ veto of public …

Need Calls Today for K-12 Budget Fix Read More »

The Mississippi Legislature will reconvene at 1 p.m. on Monday, August 10, to address issues related to COVID-19. We are hopeful that, while they are in session, the Legislature will resolve the school budget crisis created when Gov. Reeves vetoed the public school funding in HB 1700. As we reported earlier, Gov. Reeves vetoed the …

Legislature to Reconvene on Monday Read More »

Grades 7-12 in 8 counties may not begin in-person schooling before August 17, according to Gov. Reeves’ latest executive order. The mandate applies only to these counties: Bolivar Coahoma Forrest George Hinds Panola Sunflower Washington Additionally, the governor announced a statewide mask mandate in public and in retail environments and mandatory mask wearing for all students …

Governor Announces Very Limited School Delay Read More »

“It’s impossible to imagine we are not going to pay the price for cramming kids into schools right now.”  – Dr. Thomas Dobbs, State Health Officer Early last week, public health officials believed that it was possible to reopen school buildings safely. They’ve since changed their minds.  In a Q&A with the Mississippi State Medical Association, …

MS Public Health Chief: Delay School Start Date Read More »

The deadline for PERS public comments has been extended to August 24. PERS set a new deadline after staff became aware that the original address posted for comment submission contained a clerical error. Read more about the proposed PERS rule reversal. Please submit comments urging the PERS Board to vigorously pursue an amendment to state …

Deadline Extended for PERS Comments Read More »